316 REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1896. 



whole is doubtleBs the most complete and systematic of its kind in any museum in 

 the world. 



In the economic section are very full and systematic collections illustrating the 

 mineral resources of the United States, arranged geographically, and also a sys- 

 tematic series in which minerals of the same nature and from world-wide sources 

 are arranged by kinds. This collection comprises probably not fewer than 10,000 

 specimens. 



Mr. F. V. Coville, lioiiorary curator of the Department of Botany, 

 furnishes the following brief account of the collection of plants : 



With reference to the collections in the Department of Botany, it may be said that 

 they constitute what is commonly known as t!:e National Herbarium. The nucleus 

 of the herbarium consisted of the plants collected by the Wilkes exploring expedi- 

 tion during the years 1838 to 1842. To these were added later the material from the 

 North Pacific exploring expedition of Ringgold and Rodgers, followed by those of 

 Fremont, the Mexican Boundary Commission, the Pacific Railroad surveys, and all 

 the later explorations and expeditious of the Government. 



In recent years the largest amount of material received has come from the Divi- 

 sion of Botany in the Dexiartment of Agriculture, material brought together in 

 the pursuit of the investigations of that establishment. Especially noteworthy 

 among these is the collection of grasses which Dr. George Vasey gathered during 

 his studies of the forage plants of the United States during a period of about twenty 

 years. 



To the collections of the exploring expeditions and those of the Department of 

 Agriculture has been added a large amount of material donated by American botan- 

 ists or purchased from collectors, besides large consignments of plants received from 

 various foreign institutions or individuals principally as gifts or in exchange. 



The collections of the exploring expeditions and the collection of grasses are espe- 

 cially rich in type specimens. 



Mention should be made of the collections of George Joad, comprising about 10,000 

 species of representative plants of the globe, more especially those of Europe; and 

 the collection of Prof. Lester F. Ward, comprising the specimens on which his " Flora 

 of Washington and vicinity" is based, in addition to important collections made by 

 Professor Ward and his correspondents in other parts of the United States. Both 

 the Ward and the Joad collections were acquired by the Museum in 1885. 



The important collections of the Department of Minerals are sum- 

 marized by Mr. Wirt Tassiu, assistant curator, as follows: 



At the request of Prof. F. W. Clarke, the honorary curator, I have prepared, and 

 transmit herewith, a list of some of the most important collections and single objects 

 in the Mineral Department. They are: 



The Isaac Lea collections, including a collection of minerals, a collection of micas 

 and quartzes, and a collection of gems and ornamental stones, among which may be 

 noted as of especial interest a fine green tourmaline of 57 carats, a red specimen of 18 

 carats, and a hair-brown one of 16 carats, from Mount Mica, Paris, Me; a doubly 

 terminated emerald crystal from Stony Point, Alexander County, N. C, one of the 

 largest ever found, measuring 3.1 by 2 inches and weighing 8 ounces and 3 penny- 

 weights; a crystal ball cut from North Carolina quartz; a silver nugget weighing 

 448 ounces, from near Globe, Ariz; one of the largest known cut Ceylon essonites; 

 four large Ceylon asteria; a fine suite of opals in argillaceous limonite, Baracoo 

 River, Queensland. 



The Leidy collection of minerals, received from the United States Geological 

 Survey. 



A series illustrating the occurrence and associations of the zinc and lead minerals 

 of southwest Missouri, collected by W. P. Jenney. 



